A couple who neglected a pet rabbit have been banned from keeping animals for three years.

A couple who neglected a pet rabbit have been banned from keeping animals for three years.

Beverley Richardson, 35, and David Bell, 32, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a grey rabbit at their home in Blackdene, Ashington.

The pair were fined &#xA3;50 each and ordered to pay court costs of &#xA3;125 when they appeared before magistrates at Bedlington Law Courts.

Acting on a tip-off, RSPCA inspector Sue Craig visited and found the rabbit in extremely poor condition.

Its fur was matted into large clumps on its back, hair on its face was missing and the skin was raw and inflamed. It was thin, riddled with mites, two of its teeth were missing and two others were overgrown.

Richardson claimed that she regularly fed the rabbit and would have taken it to a vet had she known it was suffering.

Bell told Ms Craig that the rabbit was nothing to do with him and was cared for entirely by Richardson.

Afterwards, MsCraig said: "It was a pitiful sight and I am pleased the magistrates took this case seriously."